CES and NRF kicked off 2015 with a bang, and as usual, showed us that there is no shortage of gadgets and dashboards to help businesses solve their every need.

From an IT perspective, choosing the right tools to solve each technology challenge should involve a full evaluation the merits of feature sets, while balancing the (rapidly shrinking) budget. But the business doesn’t wait – IT is flanked by consumer-mindset-driven employees and visionary execs eager to stay on top of buzz words like Big Data and Analytics.

Not coincidentally, we’re witnessing IT budgets shift over to Line of Business (LoB), a clear nod towards the business relevance of digital engagement.

In fact, 44% of mobility initiatives are now either completely funded or jointly funded by Line of Business (LoB) leaders.

This is a great opportunity for IT to align with LoB interests and drive programs that allow LoB and IT to successfully deliver business outcomes together using technology.

Technology is a funny thing: it enthralls some, mystifies others. As evidenced by CES and NRF, there is no shortage of gadgets and dashboards these days to help businesses solve their every need. And it just keeps coming.

From an IT perspective, choosing the right tools to solve each technology challenge should involve a full evaluation the merits of feature sets, while balancing the (rapidly shrinking) budget.

But how often is IT allowed to do that anymore? Truth is, the business doesn’t wait. Flanked by consumer-mindset-driven employees insisting on using any tools that suit their fancy (hello, Shadow IT) and visionary execs eager to stay on top of visionary buzz words like Big Data and Analytics, IT often feels squeezed out from getting a seat at the table when driving the business.

The industry is witnessing a shift in IT budgets being moved over to LoB, a clear nod towards the business relevance of digital engagement.

In fact, 44% of mobility initiatives are now either completely funded or jointly funded by Line of Business (LoB) leaders.

Mobility is key. This is a great opportunity for IT to strategize and align to LoB interests to drive programs that allow LoB and IT to win together and successfully deliver business outcomes using technology.

Cisco’s Connected Mobile Experiences (CMX) sits at this sweet spot where the network, traditionally owned by IT, can help LoB with their painpoints: data analytics on customer behavior, statistics for operational optimization, and even customer engagement opportunities. To learn more about how this works, visit cisco.com/go/cmx.

The Cisco Enterprise Mobility group uses this mobility blog as a platform to provide you the most up-to-date information about our products and solutions, showcasing our thought-leadership in the mobility industry and innovative and comprehensive portfolio. So let’s revisit some of those topics we covered over the last year.

It’s NRF time again! NRF, the retail industry’s biggest conference, is back in NYC this week. Big data and analytics are still top of mind this year in retail, but the hot topic added to the mix is the use of beacons powered by Bluetooth low energy (BLE), enriching your engagement with customers and helping you make smarter business decisions.

Once again, Cisco Connected Mobile Experiences (CMX) is here at NRF this year. We’re ready to show you how you can leverage real-time analytics, location innovations (including BLE technology), and our app development platform to optimize operations, boost customer satisfaction, and increase revenue.

If you’re coming to NRF this week, check out our demos at Booth 2052 and learn how Cisco CMX can transform your retail business.

As a shopper enters a store, the retailer uses Wi-Fi to track her movements, interests, and shopping habits, providing a treasure trove of insight valuable to merchandising and product development alike.

And as advances in Wi-Fi promise increasing location precision and beacons promise pinpoint location based services, the future appears to be smooth sailing, right?

Well, not exactly.

Tracking the position of mobile devices accurately and correlating to personal data has been one of the most sought after Big Data objectives. And not just for retailers — the potential wealth of business value from data has drawn piqued interest across nearly all industries.

Yet in the real world, issues arise from both technology challenges and privacy concerns alike.

Privacy qualms speak to the heart of transformation in the Internet of Everything (IoE) age. IoE, after all, is the explosion of network connections among people, process, data, and things — and promises to be one of the most impactful periods of change in our history. And the people element is in some ways the whole point — to make our lives better, healthier, more efficient, and so forth. But the people issues will be just as challenging as those that arise around technology. Read More »

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